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Style & Beauty

Wearing 2nd hand clothes- do you?

90 replies

missbopeep · 04/09/2013 20:26

Often lots of suggestions on here to buy from Ebay etc and I'm just wondering...

do you feel comfortable in second hand clothes ( assuming they are of course laundered.)

I'm afraid I don't. I've bought a few things- an unworn cardi, a mac and a lightly used dress and I didn't feel 'right' in the dress.

I'd be fine with a coat that could be cleaned and is not next to my skin but I don't feel right wearing someone else's dresses, tops and certainly not trousers.

I've even stopped watching and bidding for 'new without tags' because I am never sure if they are genuinely unworn.

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orangeandemons · 04/09/2013 20:29

I'm the same. I've tried wearing them, but I just feel so uncomfortable in them. No matter how many times they have been washed they feel unclean

MollyBerry · 04/09/2013 20:31

Yes! You can save so much money and there's nothing wrong with them.
If you don't feel comfortable don't wear them but I would never be able to afford some of the lovely designer/higher end brand things I have from charity shops/eBay full price

Fairylea · 04/09/2013 20:32

I think you're being a bit daft :) ... in the nicest way I mean. I think you're overthinking it and making yourself feel uncomfortable.

I buy loads of things second hand. The only thing I wouldn't is bras as they stretch so easily and other underwear as they are worn in intimate areas! Other than that anything goes!

OneLittleLady · 04/09/2013 20:32

I have no problem with 2nd hand clothes as long as they are clean, stain free and are as I would expect to give them away myself. If they are not in a state that I'd be happy giving away or selling to someone if they were mine then I am not interested

Umlauf · 04/09/2013 20:32

Most of my clothes are second hand. I can afford to wear designers I love and find items I missed out on the first time round that way. I can indulge my baby in designer baby stuff that I would never justify otherwise.

I wash everything before I wear it, if I didn't think the washing machine could handle removing the essence of another person I would have a problem with my washing machine!

I wouldn't wear second hand underwear or earrings, or shoes that have been worn 'in.'

I live in Spain and a lot of people here find the idea of second hand clothing very strange and off putting. There aren't any charity shops here either.

ThePortlyPinUp · 04/09/2013 20:32

I wear lots of second hand clothes, as long as I wash them first I feel fine. After all i'd sleep in a hotel bed with sheets and pillow cases that potentially thousands of other people have slept on and eat with cutlery that other people have had in their mouths.

CelticPromise · 04/09/2013 20:36

I wear a lot of secondhand clothes, no problem with it at all. I love a bargain.

Technoprisoners · 04/09/2013 20:37

I never buy second hand clothes from eBay etc but will buy from charity shops, if the item is what I want. I don't purchase often, though. Somehow, the charity shop thing makes a big difference for me. I always wash the item thoroughly beforehand. However, I have only bought trousers from charity shops which have a tag on from a shop, unsold. Otherwise, it's only the occasional dress or shirt/blouse.

missbopeep · 04/09/2013 20:37

Ah but Portly I don't feel right sleeping in strange beds even with clean sheets- they are still full of bed bugs!

No- not overthinking at all- it's an instinctive reaction. I can get by with something that goes over another layer- but not something next to my skin. Even if it has been washed.

OP posts:

Emo76 · 04/09/2013 20:38

Yes I do. Though why something is "new without tags" on ebay I am not sure!

starsandunicorns · 04/09/2013 20:38

90% of my clothers are second hand even some of my shoes are too

LegoCaltrops · 04/09/2013 20:42

Yes, mostly. Otherwise I'd mostly be naked. As would DD. DH is extremely tall so it's unusual to find stuff in his size in good condition or he would as well. However he literally wears clothes until they are past mending & are falling apart. I'm picky & good with a needle & thread, would never get anything stained or worn out but a missing button or fallen hem is no worry.

If it's new I will have got it on special offer or reduced.

I make all our knitwear though, wouldn't buy that second hand as I see all the mistakes.

DameFanny · 04/09/2013 20:43

Yep. But I don't like things that look shiny-new anyway.

orangeandemons · 04/09/2013 20:43

I don't feel comfortable sleeping in strange beds either. Same sort of thing. I cannot stand dirty clothes either. Even a spec of dirt makes me go and change. I accept I have OCD tendencies here

LegoCaltrops · 04/09/2013 20:44

Except underwear & shoes, obviously.

LegArmpits · 04/09/2013 20:44

Yes, I love stuff that's worn in.

LapsedGoth · 04/09/2013 20:50

Hell yeah! Probably about 1/2 of my wardrobe. But if it's not for you, it's not for you.

Did once have bad experience with a pair of shorts from eBay...putting that memory back in the locked box now.

PlentyOfPubeGardens · 04/09/2013 20:51

Yes, around 70% of my clothes are second hand, excluding undies.

Not only do you get some real bargains but you're not restricted to whatever narrow range of styles and colours are in this season. Also much more environmentally friendly and, if you go to charity shops, you're supporting a good cause.

I've never ever come across bed bugs in a hotel, although I'm aware it does happen very occasionally - I think it would quickly be picked up on tripadvisor and other review sites if there was a problem.

ProphetOfDoom · 04/09/2013 20:51

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Tweet2tweet · 04/09/2013 20:51

I have no problem with second hand except night wear, underwear, earrings and very worn shoes. I am also cautious of trousers and tend not to buy second hand. Everything else is fine with me and I have some great stuff that I couldn't afford otherwise. Everything is dry cleaned or double washed before I wear it.

I think that a lot of new clothes can potentially be 'second hand'. When I worked I retail we put returns that were in new condition back on the shop floor. Who knows how many times they had been tried on or even worn with tags left on. In addition a lot of online purchases are returned and returned so again have been tried on and maybe worn too.

juneybean · 04/09/2013 20:52

I don't mind, I buy stuff on eBay/charity shops, I get bored so easily that I don't like to spend a lot of money

KatyPutTheCuttleOn · 04/09/2013 20:55

All the time, it's very rare that I buy anything new.

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expatinscotland · 04/09/2013 20:57

Sure! Often.

VerySmallSqueak · 04/09/2013 20:58

I wear very few new clothes.
Good for the planet and my purse.

missbopeep · 04/09/2013 21:00

Plentyofpubes when I said bed bugs I was meaning the microspcopic bugs- dust mites etc.

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